Aang's Return
by crusanite
Summary: A two part Kataang piece. Just typical aftermath fluff, with bratty water tribe kids thrown in for fun.
1. Chapter 1

It had been a very long and unusually warm summer. The Southern Water Tribe had enjoyed exceptional fishing, as well as a massive crop of sea prunes unrivalled by past records. The deliciously temperate summer afternoons were often spent on the sea, in a bay created specifically with the purpose of siesta in mind. The bay was shallow, but still deep enough for the little canoes and swimmers willing to brave the still chilly temperatures.

Due to the rekindling of the sisterhood between tribes, the water bender population of the South Pole had risen dramatically, though the oldest of these new benders was little over six years old. It was just as well that Paku was otherwise engaged in a conference in the Fire Nation with the Order of the White Lotus, or else the children would have driven him up the wall.

"Give her back, Tei! She's mine!" Nami scrambled over the top of a large snow heap. She lay on her belly for a moment, exhausted. For at least the last three hours, she had felt that the game was no longer funny, and she wanted Lin-Kee back. After all, she had made her herself, and her mother had only helped a little. All of the other girls' dolls were their mothers' or grandmothers' old hand-me-downs. Lin-Kee was brand new, made of the softest turtle seal skin, and her dress was made of a strip of Nami's own. Grangran hadn't been very happy about that.

Nami was aroused by a cackle from somewhere below her. "Tei! I'm serious!" she wailed, clumsily sliding down the hill. The voice of the boy grew louder as the little girl huffed and puffed over the next incline.

"Isn't it time for your swimming lesson, Lin-Kee? Why yes, Tei, I think it is!"

"Don't!"Nami screamed, tripping over the hem of her skirt.

"What's that, Lin-Kee? Oh no, I forgot, you can't swim!" Nami threw herself onto the crouched form of the boy, pounding his back with her little brown fists.

"Give her back, give her back!" Tei grinned nastily, dangling the girl's doll over the fishing hole.

"But Nami! I haven't finished teaching Lin-Kee how to swim!"

"No! No! She doesn't want to!" Nami pulled at Tei's coat arm desperately. "Now give her back!"

"Okay, but only if she wants to go with you."

"She wants to, she wants to, she wants to!"

"Okay then... Oh! What's that, Lin-Kee? You want to stay with me?"

"No!"

"And you don't want to see Nami ever again?"

"No!"

"That life isn't worth living anymore?"

"No, no, no!"

"You'd rather I drop you in the sea, so you don't have to see Nami's ugly face ever again?"

"Tei! Give her back!"

"She doesn't seem to want to talk to you, Nami."

"Yes she does, yes she does! You're lying!"

"No, I think she's serious. She's lost the will to live." Nami started to cry. Tei shook her off, and ever so slowly lowered the doll towards the little fishing hole. "Goodbye, cruel world!" he crowed. Lin-Kee's tiny seal-skin foot was less than a millimetre away from her watery grave when something odd happened: the surface of the water had quite suddenly frozen over. "Huh?" Tei stared, prodding the glassy shell with a gloved finger. Nami abruptly stopped crying, and sat up straight, wide-eyed. "Nami!" snapped Tei crossly. "You can't waterbend-!" It was then that Tei realized that a long shadow had appeared on the snow next to his. He swivelled around, and gasped. "S-S-Sifu Katara!" he spluttered, the colour draining from his face. Katara folded her arms, raising an eyebrow.

"Perhaps Nami can't waterbend," she said. "But I can." She tugged the doll from Tei's limp grip. She held the doll close to her ear, frowning. "What's that, you say?" she gasped. "Tei did what? Uh huh... Oh dear... I see. Hmm. Mmm. Yes. Yes, I understand. Punished, you say?" Tei whimpered. "Fed to the Tiger Seals?" Katara's eyes flickered to the boy's face (now a mask of terror) for a moment."Yes, I can see where you're coming from. But what about his parents? Yes, that's an even better idea! When he gets back, Sifu Paku will be much harder on him than the seals-" At this point, Tei fell to his knees, and grabbed at Katara's legs.

"Please, Sifu Katara! Not Sifu Paku! I choose the seals!" he wailed. "Don't tell Sifu Paku, please!" Katara looked him with a blank expression. "Well," she said, shaking her head sadly. "It's not up to me, really. Lin-Kee is the real victim here, she'll decide your fate." Katara passed the doll back to its overjoyed owner, who hugged it tight. "What do you say, Nami? What have you and Linn-Kee decided upon for Tei's just desserts? The seals, Sifu Paku, or all your chores for a week?"

"What?" Howled Tei. He was quickly silenced by a glowering look from Katara. Nami frowned, listening to her doll. Her face split into a wide grin, and she turned to Tei.

"Tei," she said loudly, pointing her finger accusingly at him. "We hereby accuse you of high robbery treason kidnappingness of Lin-Kee. You have to do all of my chores for a week," (Tei groaned) "And you have to roll me home!" Nami looked up at Katara triumphantly.

"Do I have to?" Tei asked Katara glumly.

"Either that, or I ask Sifu Paku to sort this out." Said Katara delicately. Tei dragged his feet towards the nearest lump of ice, and promptly began to bend it into a cylindrical shape, grumbling under his breath. Nami beamed, and hugged Katara's leg.

"Thank you, Sifu Katara," she whispered, rubbing her cheek into the soft blue fabric. Katara smiled warmly, and returned the hug.

"You're welcome, Nami. Now, you let me know if that boy causes you anymore trouble, alright?" The little girl nodded, regarding Katara with wide eyes. "Good girl. Now, I think Tei's finished his roller!" Tei shot them a sour look, standing beside a curious looking contraption: two cylinders of ice lay parallel on the ground, a square platform holding them together. Tucking her doll under her arm, Nami pulled herself onto the platform, and settled cross-legged on top.

"Roll!" She cried, pointing ahead.

"The village is the other way, dummy," Tei sniggered.

"I know!" said Nami indignantly. All the same, she readjusted her seated position as so she faced the other direction. "Now, roll!" Tei rolled his eyes. After a few long, horizontal sweeping movements of his arms, the cylinders of ice began to roll, faster and faster, until Nami and her doll were whizzing across the ice flats. The little girl shrieked with pleasure, and Tei stomped after her. The pair were very quickly only small specks on the horizon. The waterbending master watched them until they vanished from her sight altogether.

Katara grinned, settling her hands on her hips. When she had been Tei's age she had barely been able to lift a bowlful of water, and yet the boy was capable of bending ice. She shook her head.

With a whisk of her finger, the little fishing hole returned to its usual watery state. In fact, it was not so much a fishing hole as its shape and size suggested, but Katara's preferred bending source. The water itself was ordinary, but Katara loved the seclusion of the place: surrounded by walls of ice, her own little valley. Here, had she the time, she would pass the hours practicing and, when in a particularly inspired mood, possibly even invent new waterbending techniques. And, sometimes, just sometimes, Katara would spend her time with the avatar by the little hole in the ice, hidden from the rest of the world.

Katara settled on her knees before the hole, pulling a sliver of water from its depths. It had been a good few months since his last visit. Was it two? Or perhaps ever three, or four! It didn't matter, it seemed to her an indefinite period of time. Maybe it had only been a week. Katara felt a deep stab of longing in her chest whenever a scrap of news of Aang's travels around the world reached their village. Sokka had what he wanted: Suki hadn't liked the cold, and so they had agreed to honeymoon on Kyoshi Island. Happy as she was for her brother (she hadn't thought it possible for her brother's egotism and machoism to be cured) and grateful for Suki, she couldn't help but despise the two of them for being so happy upon occasion.

They had saved the world, hadn't they? Fire Lord Ozai and Azula were locked safely away, under the guard of the Order of the White Lotus. The Earth Kingdom had been freed, and the Fire Nation restored to its peaceful, pre-war state. So why? Why couldn't they be together, like Sokka and Suki? Katara knew the answer: how could she not, as it constantly lurked in the back of her mind, poisoning her thoughts and feelings. Aang was the avatar, it was simple as that. He could never truly belong to her. Not all of him, anyway.

Katara's water splashed miserably back into the pool. She had thought that a bit of bending would clear her head, but far from it. She pulled her knees to her chest, and closed her eyes.

"Faster!" Tei winced at the staggering height of the pitch of Nami's voice.

"I'm right here, you know. You don't have to shout."

"I'll stop shouting when you go faster!" Tei thrust his arms forward violently.

"Wheeeeee!" Tei jogged over the hill, and watched as the roller and its passenger hurtled towards the village. The sun was low in the sky, and the village was thrown into twilight: the hue of the ice and the rosy glow of the sunset created a warm mixture of purples, pinks, and blues that splashed across the white landscape. A few stars twinkled above the horizon, dusted by a thin layer of lilac clouds. Tei yawned, and settled himself on the ground, looking up into the sky. The muffled thud of Nami and her roller crashing into the village walls from below didn't stir his attention from the heavens for an instant, though a wide smile spread across his face. It was pleasant out here, away from the other children. Tei was proud to be the oldest waterbender in the village. Oldest after the Sifus, of course, but they didn't count. He was the best too. Tei didn't need to try and make friends: they came to him, mostly out of awe and admiration. But, they were so naturally inferior to him that he did get sick of them, after a while. Sometimes being alone was the best thing for him. It certainly made him happy. But only sometimes.

Tei gazed greedily at the stars. He was going to be the first person in the history of the world to catch one. One day. Funny people had come to the Southern Water Tribe over his relatively short lifetime. Funny people who dressed in green, mostly. And a few who dressed in red. The green ones were the ones who showed him the star charts, and the maps of the world, but the red ones who Tei liked the most. They had plans. Ambitions. And they weren't going to do nothing about it, like everyone down here. If he had the help of the green people and their funny inventions, he could reach the stars one day. Then, he could show the red people, and the Water Tribes, how strong he was. Tei the Great. Tei the Startamer. Startamer. He liked that.

A flicker of movement caught his eye. Tei leaned forward, frowning. Something in the sky? He squinted, looking for the whatever it was. He had sworn... Yes! There it was! A little white spot, growing larger by the minute, gliding in from the north. He knew it was the north. The stars said so. But what was it? It seemed familiar. Tei jumped to his feet, a hot rush of excitement suddenly jumping through his body. He squinted, trying to perceive the shape.

His eyes widened, and his face split into a grin. Tei galloped down the hill, waving his arms wildly, shouting at the top of his lungs: "Avatar Aang! Avatar Aang!"

"Faster!" Tei winced at the staggering height of the pitch of Nami's voice.

"I'm right here, you know. You don't have to shout."

"I'll stop shouting when you go faster!" Tei thrust his arms forward violently.

"Wheeeeee!" Tei jogged over the hill, and watched as the roller and its passenger hurtled towards the village. The sun was low in the sky, and the village was thrown into twilight: the hue of the ice and the rosy glow of the sunset created a warm mixture of purples, pinks, and blues that splashed across the white landscape. A few stars twinkled above the horizon, dusted by a thin layer of lilac clouds. Tei yawned, and settled himself on the ground, looking up into the sky. The muffled thud of Nami and her roller crashing into the village walls from below didn't stir his attention from the heavens for an instant, though a wide smile spread across his face. It was pleasant out here, away from the other children. Tei was proud to be the oldest waterbender in the village. Oldest after the Sifus, of course, but they didn't count. He was the best too. Tei didn't need to try and make friends: they came to him, mostly out of awe and admiration. But, they were so naturally inferior to him that he did get sick of them, after a while. Sometimes being alone was the best thing for him. It certainly made him happy. But only sometimes.

Tei gazed greedily at the stars. He was going to be the first person in the history of the world to catch one. One day. Funny people had come to the Southern Water Tribe over his relatively short lifetime. Funny people who dressed in green, mostly. And a few who dressed in red. The green ones were the ones who showed him the star charts, and the maps of the world, but the red ones who Tei liked the most. They had plans. Ambitions. And they weren't going to do nothing about it, like everyone down here. If he had the help of the green people and their funny inventions, he could reach the stars one day. Then, he could show the red people, and the Water Tribes, how strong he was. Tei the Great. Tei the Startamer. Startamer. He liked that.

A flicker of movement caught his eye. Tei leaned forward, frowning. Something in the sky? He squinted, looking for the whatever it was. He had sworn... Yes! There it was! A little white spot, growing larger by the minute, gliding in from the north. He knew it was the north. The stars said so. But what was it? It seemed familiar. Tei jumped to his feet, a hot rush of excitement suddenly jumping through his body. He squinted, trying to perceive the shape.

His eyes widened, and his face split into a grin. Tei galloped down the hill, waving his arms wildly, shouting at the top of his lungs: "Avatar Aang! Avatar Aang!" 


	2. Chapter 2

Aang frowned, glancing over his shoulder. He had sworn he had heard something. Hmm. The avatar shrugged and slid from the neck of the great Flying Bison, landing on the snow with a light crunch. Appa growled low in his throat as Aang patted him on the neck. "Sure is cold, huh boy." It had been a week's flight from the Fire Nation Capital to the South Pole, and yet the change in weather was still quite a shock.

Much of their work nowadays still involved ferrying news and tokens of good will between the three states, particularly from the Fire Nation. Zuko, as it turned out, had a great deal of complicated and ambitious plans for keeping international relations running smoothly, many of which involved Aang. The presence of the avatar not only sent a powerful message of the Fire Nation's peaceful intentions to the people, but gave the new Fire Lord a political shield to hide behind, should conferences take a turn for the worse. As far he could recall, such an incident had only occurred once, at the very beginning of Zuko's reign. This was before the situation in Ba Sing Se had stabilized, of course. Due to the concentration on the villainy of the Fire Nation, very little notice had been taken of the Earth Kingdom's own political issues, something which Aang still found surprising. The temporary regime set up in the avatar's absence was as corrupt as the last, the ruling elite being a small collection of inept, weedy nobles. When the Fire Lord made his formal visit to the Earth Kingdom capital to discuss the terms of peace, he was promptly arrested. It was only through Aang's intervention that the talks were allowed to continue at all, and even then the circumstances were very unpleasant. Through his knowledge of Kyoshi's failure of political handling in the past, he could at least discern that further violence and the creation of an overindulged military arm was pointless. The avatar oversaw the signing of the Fire Nation's temporary terms of surrender to the Earth Kingdom, and had a later date scheduled as to deal with the formalities and to create a more permanent arrangement. Fire Lord Zuko departed within a few days, at the general will of the Earth Kingdom.  
It had taken Aang six whole months to install a secure government in Ba Sing Se, time spent between searching for the Earth King and trying to reason with the stubborn old men who ran the country. In the end, a compromise was reached: the Earth Kingdom would remain in the hands of the Council of Nobles, with the Earth King at its head. The Earth King had agreed to this plan with much enthusiasm, but insisted that Bosco accompany him to all of the meetings concerning it. This didn't worry Aang in the slightest, but alarmed the nobility, as the bear had a tendency to roar when conversations grew too heated. The Council of Nobles had been Aang's idea, but he remained uneasy with it for quite some time. He had initially worried about further corruption, but the presence of a newer generation of the Ba Sing Se elite in the Council had put his fears to rest. These younger individuals had fresh ideas and less traditional views than the elderly, and he was certain that their input would help put the Earth Kingdom back on track.  
During this time Aang had next to no time for himself, and he had been terribly lonely. His only source of comfort was Toph, who had decided to remain in Ba Sing Se for the time. She claimed that she was only here for the palace food, but her true motives of keeping him company were to Aang very obvious, and for this he was extremely grateful. He remembered trying to summarize a day of political conferencing to her one night over tea, but she had cut him off halfway through with a loud and obtrusive yawn.  
"It's not that I'm not fascinated by your day, Aang," she had said, leaning back against the cushions and folding her arms behind her head. "But I'm just not fascinated by your day." Aang had quickly made a feeble attempt to change the subject.  
"The weather was nice...?" he said weakly.  
"Did you even go outside today?"  
"Well, no, but-"  
"Okay, Twinkletoes, you get credit for trying. Why don't we talk about my day?" He had listened intently as she described to him the fixing of the Ba Sing Se wall ("Did it all myself. I don't need those prissy city benders." Toph said proudly), and the rolling of all of the Fire Nation tanks out of the city on a great wave of earth, burying them in a deep pit. She told him about the monument erected in a square in the Middle Ring, dedicated to the saving of the city by the Order of the White Lotus, and lunch with Iroh in the Jasmine Dragon. As best as she could, Toph spoke of the neat little parks through which they had walked, and relayed to him the colours of the spring blossoms as Iroh had described them to her.  
Years onwards, that evening still remained at the foremost of his mind, one of Aang's most treasured memories. In such a time of stress, insomnia and overwhelming boredom, listening to Toph's light-hearted description of the Ba Sing Se beyond the political spectrum had allowed him to escape from the world of the avatar, if only for a few hours.  
Aang's role in world affairs varied greatly, from disputes such as the ruling of the Earth Kingdom to rescuing bearded cats from trees. He greatly preferred the latter, as saving the day had become as simple as returning the yowling creature to its thrilled owner. Naturally, he enjoyed helping people, and generally making others happy made him so. However, he had his own desires. He hardly voiced them, certainly, but staying in one place for an extensive period of time no matter the company would cause him to become irritable. Zuko sensibly assumed that it was Aang's nomadic nature behind his prickliness, and no matter the situation he would tell the avatar that it was under control and to move on for the time being. Aang greatly appreciated this, though felt a little stab of guilt in accepting these offers. As time passed, he had done so less and less, though it was still a habit. Not only did he feel he was abandoning his duties, but he was also very aware that Zuko misunderstood his motives.  
If he had recorded all of his travels since the ending of the great war on a map, it would take no expert in cartography to tell that most of his journeys had a gradual southwards trend. Then, even Zuko might have become suspicious. It was partially true that the avatar didn't like being tied down to any one place for too long, but when it came to the naked truth; the fact of the matter was that he missed her terribly. Everywhere and always, where or when so ever he was abroad, there was a small empty space gaping in the bottom of his heart. His chest would ache at the thought of her, or the mention of her name. It only worsened over the length of his absence. Sometimes, in the dead of night, he would dream, and more often than not wake up in a cold sweat. What if she were hurt? Dead, even? How would he know? In other dreams he returned to find her married to another. Aang knew she was waiting for him. She was already of marrying age, and she had already accumulated offers. It filled him with fierce pride that she had flatly refused all of them. But how much longer could she stand against the tide of her culture's expectations and traditions? These were dreams, of course, he told himself. Nothing more. But they were worse than those he had before Sokka's invasion of the Fire Nation, all those years ago. His only comfort was that, no matter the horrors of his nightmares, as far as he could recall Aang had not once forgotten his pants.

Aang shivered, pressing his back against the warmth of the bison and weaving his fingers through Appa's thick, white fur. The thin, orange and yellow garb did little to protect him from the chills of the South Pole. He looked up at the great wall of ice that marked the village of the Southern Water Tribe before him. He had helped build it. He was given a warm welcome here, and Bato always greeted him with a large bowl of fresh sea prunes. Aang was too polite to refuse, and thus he had encountered problems all over the world as news quickly spread that sea prunes were the avatar's favourite dish. It fascinated him how houses constructed of ice could somehow remain warm even on the coldest of nights, and how the benders moved fish through the air with such grace he had no doubt that the fish hadn't noticed it had left the ocean. He had watched in awe as the rainbow snakes of light danced through the inky black sky on still nights. He still sought the penguins, though he had reached that sad age when sledding was no longer an option as it would result in the squishing of the creature.  
Aang would have arrived earlier, had he not intended to do so otherwise. Had Appa landed in the afternoon, the avatar and the entire Southern Water Tribe would be seated circled around a huge bonfire, listening to the ancient myths and legends of the founding of the universe, the learning of waterbending from the moon, the great war, and the adventures of Avatar Aang, as told by the elders. But as it happened, the village was now preparing for a perfectly normal evening, unaware that the avatar stood meters outside of their walls. Aang grinned at the thought of Sokka being yelled at by Grangran in her rasping voice for forgetting to take the clothes from the line, somewhere beyond the face of ice. He quite suddenly remembered that he was still on Kyoshi Island with Suki. Perhaps he could visit them on the way back.  
The reason Aang had returned to the South Pole so quietly was that he had been away for at least four months, his longest period of absence in two years.  
"Avatar Aang! Avatar Aang!" Aang jumped violently. Working his fingers free from Appa's fur, he peered cautiously around the flying bison. He found himself nose to nose with a little boy grinning from ear to ear. The avatar yelped with surprise, stumbling backwards only to slip on the ice, landing on his rear with a nasty thud. The flying bison rumbled softly. "It's not funny, Appa!" grumbled Aang, gingerly rubbing his backside. From Aang's seated position, the little boy was only slightly taller than him, still with the same grin plastered across his face. Aang blinked. The boy continued to grin. "Avatar Aang!" he shouted suddenly, rushing forwards. The avatar smiled weakly.  
"Hello," he said, still a little alarmed by the almost violently cheerful expression on the child's face. "It's Tei, isn't it?" Impossibly, the boy's grin widened.  
"That's right!" he said proudly. "I'm the first to see you: Kana's going to give me the prize again!" Oh yes, thought Aang, amused. Now I remember you: the over competitive little waterbending boy.  
"Actually, Tei... I was wondering if you could do something for me." Tei's face surely must have split in two at this point. Taking this as a positive response, Aang beckoned the boy to come closer. Tei hurried to his side, bending low. "Instead of telling people I've arrived, why don't we keep this a secret for now? Could you do that?" Tei frowned.  
"But Kana's going to give me a reward." Aang bit his lip anxiously.  
"Sometimes the greatest reward in life is knowing you've done something good for someone else." The boy looked at him blankly, and Aang's shoulders sagged.  
"There's a bag of fireflakes in Appa's saddle," said the avatar in a defeated voice.  
"Alright!" Tei scrambled up the bison's leg, falling into the saddle and disappearing from sight. Aang took this opportunity to rise to his feet, slowly and carefully. He folded his arms, looking intently at the saddle until he heard satisfied munching sounds. "Remember Tei: I'm not here. Okay?"  
"Mmm!" came the response from the saddle. The avatar grimaced. Clearly, this was the best answer he was going to get. Aang straightened his tunic, taking a deep breath. An idea struck him. "Oh, uh, Tei!" he called.  
"Mmm?"  
"There's another bag in the back pocket."  
"Mmm! Oor duh beft, Awataw Ahng!"  
"By the way, you haven't seen Sifu Katara anywhere, have you?"  
"Mmm hmm. Mwy?" Aang blushed furiously, very glad the child was too focused on stuffing his face to notice.  
"Ah... I have to talk to her about... Fish."  
"Fwying fwish?"  
"Uh, no, no Tei just... Boring, plain old fish."  
"Wats uh wewy bowing fing tuh tawk bout."  
"Have you seen her or not?"  
"Mmm. Any mwore fiyah fwakes?"  
"No!"  
"Oh... Bwy duh fwishing howe."  
"Thanks." Tei didn't respond, happily crunching away out of sight. Aang paused, leaning in close to Appa's ear. "Keep an eye on him, and make sure he doesn't wake up-" There was a loud shriek from the saddle, followed by a shout of joy from Tei. "...Momo." the avatar finished lamely. "Never mind... Well, I guess I'll be back in a few hours, okay boy?" Appa stared straight ahead, appearing not to have heard him. Aang frowned. "Boy?" it was then that, out of the corner of his eye, he caught a flicker of moment over his shoulder. He turned, startled.  
Katara stood at the top of the hill, her eyes wide and her mouth slightly open. His chest thudded painfully.  
"Aang?" her voice sounded small and thin across the ice flat.  
"Katara!" Aang grinned wildly, his cheeks burning.  
"Aang!" She began to stumble down the hill, her hair streaming behind her. Aang jogged forwards, slowing to an awkward stop after a few metres.  
"K-Katara!" he stammered, a little dazed. "I'm so sorry I'm late! There were all of those treaties for reparations from the Fire Nation to the Northern Water tribe, and then Zuko somehow got lost on the way there, and I had to go find him, and then on the way here the Zhangs and the Gan Jin were feuding again, and they wouldn't quit until - Mmph!" At that point, Katara had flung her arms around Aang's neck, slamming her mouth against his and simultaneously knocking him off his feet.  
His heart was beating at such a pace it threatened to explode, and his stomach did a somersault. The prepared apology he had practiced over and over for the last week vanished, forever forgotten. Everything was perfect, just as it should be. As the blood pounded in his ears, Aang wrapped his arms tight about her slim frame, returning the kiss with passion. After a few wonderful moments, Katara pulled her head away from his, beaming down at him. Her hair hung about them like a curtain, shifting slightly in the wind. Aang gazed at her, mesmerized. "Hi," he breathed. She titled her head slightly, rays of the setting run winking through her hair.  
"Hi."  
"I missed you, Katara."  
"I missed you too. Don't ever stay away from me for that long again, got it?"  
"I couldn't if I tried." She blinked, and leaned once again. An exclamation of disgust from somewhere above them caused Katara to start, and her head snapped towards the sound. Aang turned bright red, slowly titling his head in suit. Perched on top of Appa with a horrified expression plastered across his face sat Tei. He dropped the bag of fireflakes in his hand.  
"Tei!" spluttered Katara, furious. "What-?"  
"Avatar Aang, what has THAT got to do with fish?"


End file.
